The Turning of the Tides
by SoulAceFanFiction
Summary: EXTENDED ONE SHOT: VAMPIRE TEETH & STICKY KISSES. Bella Swan becomes a runaway bride when Leah divulges the circumstances of her imprinting. With the intention of quashing Leah's insistent belief that Jacob and she are meant for a happy ever after she returns home some years later.


Prologue  
Alice rubbed her temples, stepping away from me as she fixed my make up. If it were up to me I wouldn't have bothered. Maybe some lipgloss and a small amount of mascara would have sufficed today. I was getting married.  
To me, now I'd thought about this, though I was getting married reluctantly and it was completely for Edward my opinion was that I was giving myself to him, and I was pure. That was a huge thing to him. A face-full of makeup smeared across my skin didn't really fit with that ideal.  
Massaging her temples more furiously, now. I just watched as her face contorted into different expressions, all versions of pain and confusion.  
"Alice, what's wrong?" Rosalie had barely finished speaking before there was a frantic, inhumanly fast rapping at the bathroom door and Jasper pushed inside. Gripping her forearms he pulled them away from her face. I watched as he fussed her, brushed the hair from her face, caressed her cheeks, pulled her mouth to his. Her eyes didn't move from mine.  
I hadn't breathed, moved an inch, a millimetre even since jasper had appeared. I could tell there was something drastically wrong and I was so panicked I froze.  
"Everything's gone, Bella." She gasped, her words were like someone throwing a bucked of ice water over me.  
"What do you mean?" I asked quietly, visibly shaken. "I'm marrying Edward. He's waiting for me. Right now, today. Here." I was so flummoxed, confused. I didn't realise what I was saying.  
"You... You've vanished. There's nothing, Bella." Jasper let me push him away so I could get closer to her, as if being closer would mean I could understand her better. He might have left the room then. I wasn't paying attention.  
"What? That's not possible." I looked around confused, even Rosalie looked slightly panicked, torn. "Is it Jacob? Is he going to do something?" There may have been a hint of relief, maybe a little too much enthusiasm, I was frantic. How was this possible? There was only one reason I could think of, only one person who would want, could stop me from marrying Edward and becoming a vampire. Maybe I had been waiting for Jacob to come back. For him to try once more.  
"No, Bella. This is your choice. You choose. In thirty eight seconds you vanish." My body, instantly drained of energy, emotion, direction even and began to shut down. I felt as though I was dying. How was this possible? Again. Why did I feel as though my life was ending—again. What could possibly happen. 'Edward is mine' was a resounding thought in my mind. My heart thudded in my chest too quickly and it hurt. The pain radiated from my chest and shot down my left arm to my fingertips where it settled, puns and needles lingering there. Maybe I was dying, a heart attack at almost eighteen.  
I could barely feel Rosalie's ice cold fingers swiftly working the hundreds of buttons along the back of my dress. When I realised it broke me out of the trance I was in.  
"What are you doing?" I asked slightly unconsciously. Fisting my dress I spun on her, pulling it away from her. If looks could kill mine would have. She was touching my wedding dress and there was only one person who was supposed to undress me today. Rosalie just simply smirked.  
"You're not fit for running anywhere with this on,mare you? I could always," the way she looked me up and down suggested that she'd rip it from me if I let her. I clutched it tighter to my chest.  
"No!" I gasped.  
Suddenly there was a blow to the building that rocked it to the foundations followed by an inhuman but feminine roar.  
"You will let me speak with her!" It was Leah. Another slam and a crunch. "Get out of my way." The whole house shook again. Rushing towards the door of Alice and Jasper's bedroom I didn't have time to open it before she came barreling through, the door bounced against the wall. Leah looked frantic, my first thought of course was Jacob, was he hurt; worse was he dead—had she come to gloat that he had imprinted. Even as sisters in arms would she still hate me?  
"Bella!"  
"Is Jacob?"  
"You can't do this." I tried to pull my hands out of hers and turn away.  
"Why? Jacob."  
"Jacob? He's coming home, you can't do this." Jacob is coming home. My heart sang yet was disappointed at the same time.  
"He didn't? You know?"  
"No. Stop. Just listen. You can't marry Edward, you can't become one of them, it's gross it's disgusting." There was no way I was listening to this. Any of it. How dare she—of everyone—think I would listen to a single word she said.  
"Let me go." I told her sternly. Her eyes were wet with tears and now she paused I could see tear tracks down her cheeks.  
"Bella please, listen to me." I shook my head. Why was she doing this? She hated me. "Emily's pregnant." Sinking to her knees, it was like all her energy had seeped out of her right where she stood. All I could do was look at her aghast. What difference did that make to me?  
"I, um, ah... Congratulations?" I genuinely didn't know what to say. "But," I shook my head again,  
"And I imprinted." She paused and my mouth just hung open. "I imprinted on Angela." The hairs on my arms rose. I was terrified, not that Leah had imprinted on a woman, though that was certainly something to think about at a later date and that it was one of my, if not the closest human friend I'd ever had but because I just knew—I could feel that whatever she said next was it, it was going to change everything. "Bella, I've seen her so, so many times at church and I imprinted only this morning." Leah glanced around the room, wrinkled her nose it was like she had just realised where she was; in the middle of a vampire mansion, where she'd most likely assaulted several vampires in her attempt to get to a girl who was willingly going to become one of the things she was created to kill very, very soon. Standing up she pushed away from me and backed towards the door shaking violently.  
"Just think. I don't have time to explain now but I let him go, I let Sam go and now... This." She barely finished turning before she phased into her wolf form, fabric tatters floating through the air around her. With one last glance that took my breath away she bolted for the sheer glass window at he end of the corridor and slammed through it.  
I looked around the bedroom, not a vampire in sight. I dropped the dress from my front where I'd clutched it tight, stepped out of it and rolled my panties, suspender belt and stockings down my legs, flicked off my shoes and scrambled across the room on my hands and knees for my jeans that were in my pack. I'd never had such good coordination under pressure. I didn't bother with a tee, I couldn't see one in the pile of fabric I'd pulled from my bag. There was a bra, I grabbed that. The black lace snapped into place and I wiggled my boobs into it correctly at the same time that I pushed my arms into a large olive green hoody. Zipping it up the front before pulled on my chucks. Quickly I rammed everything back into the bag, zipping that up part way as I stood, pushing my feet more comfortably into my shoes.  
Out! I needed to get out. Scrambling for the door I looked in the hallway, no one. As if they wouldn't have stopped me already if they had wanted to. To my left I saw an indent in the plaster, through to the foundation, it distracted me and I tripped, sliding down the stairs. I wasn't sure how I landed, rather gracefully on my feet at the bottom but I did. Looking around again I saw no one, the house was eerily empty but then the wedding was being held outside, no one really needed to be inside if I thought about it.  
That was when I saw it, next to the front door. A balloon from one of the elaborate decorations alice had outside attached to a small sand weight. At the bottom a set of keys were tied to it, the Mercedes emblem caught my eye. I bolted, slipping to my knees a couple of steps before I reached the weight. Completely frantic I grasped the string and snapped it, the balloon floating off toward the high ceiling somewhere, grabbing the card stock that was propped up behind it without thinking I stood and without a pause I swung open the front door, there were guests out on the front lawn, a couple smoking, some fifty feet away. I didn't recognise them.  
I didn't want to take one of the Cullen cars but I didn't have the truck any longer so had no choice. I could send it them back some how when I got to wherever I was going.  
The car had been moved so it was no longer in the garage but facing the direction I needed it to be—away from the Cullen mansion.  
I drove and I didn't stop until I needed gas. Pulling into a service station I suddenly realised I had nothing to pay with, everything overwhelmed me and I began to cry. I hadn't thought about any of this. I had been so impulsive, and stupid, and immature—and human. I hated myself and thinking that final reason just about did me in. Thinking about being human, staying human only made me cry harder. I reached for the note and held it close to my chest. I kissed it, so stupid but I sent a silent sorry to Edward and I hoped, if only this once he could hear my thoughts. "I do love you, Edward." I told the car interior.  
Part of me didn't want to read what I thought was going to be my final communication between Edward and myself but at the same time there was no way I could resist. I recognised the paper now, it was one of the ones left over from when a Alice had made our wedding invitations.  
My dearest Bella,  
Be free. My soul will always, has always been yours. I would have kept my promise to you, please believe that but also remember: The right thing isn't always the easiest thing to do... It doesn't make it any less right though Bella, I will miss you desperately but this is right and I'm so pleased you've chosen this. Not for me, not for Jacob or anyone else but yourself. Use the credit card and keep the car for as long as you need them. They will keep you safe and your safety had always been my top priority, even if I haven't always gone about things the right way. I've been scared and rash at times but I didn't mean to smother you and I can see that is what I did, whether you've seen it or not.  
Live and don't regret. We will always be here. If you should need anything, don't hesitate to contact Carlisle or Esme. You have the number.

Eternally, unregrettably yours,  
Edward.

A/N: Thank you for the warm welcome back everyone. It's much appreciated. I apologise for the delay in posting I know I said it would be Saturday night. I had an exhausting day and passed out at about nine thirty before I had chance to post.

I am still searching for a title for this fiction so if any of you have any suggestions it is much appreciated.

Ren ~


End file.
